Finland began erecting the first section of fence on its border with Russia on Friday, less than two weeks following it joined NATO, completing a security shift made in response to the war in Ukraine.
Fearing a backlash following it applied to join NATO, the government decided last year to build the fence, primarily in anticipation of Russia’s move to flood the border with migrants.
Finland is anticipating a repeat of events on the EU’s eastern border in Poland in the winter of 2021, when the bloc accused neighboring Belarus and a close ally of Russia of creating a crisis by transporting migrants from the Middle East, giving them visas and pushing them towards the border.
The Finnish fence, made of steel mesh, is scheduled to cover regarding 200 kilometers of the most sensitive parts of Finland’s border by the end of 2026. Ismo Kurki, the project manager, said today, Friday, that the tourists are not intended to stop any invasion attempt, but it will be equipped with monitoring equipment.
The border, which extends 1,300 km in total, has so far seen only limited human activity.
Finnish border guards said that last year the country detected only 30 illegal crossings there and Russian border guards stopped regarding 800 attempts to enter Finland.
A border guard team was working on the first three-kilometre stretch of the fence at Imatra, regarding 250 kilometers north-east of Helsinki.
“The situation on the Finnish-Russian border was stable and is now stable,” said Jari Tolpanen, a Brigadier General in the Finnish border guard forces.
“But in this totally changed (security) situation, Finland should have closer and more independent border control. Finland should be less dependent on Russian border controls.”
Poland and the Baltic states have already started erecting fences on their borders with Russia and Belarus following invading Ukraine in February 2022.
Until now, the Finnish-Russian border was just a line in the vast forests that covered the area, marked only by a low wire fence meant to stop livestock and other domestic animals, but not people.
The new fence will be three meters high, topped with razor wire, and will cost around 380 million euros ($417 million).
“Most of (the border area) is very remote and very difficult to access,” Tolpanen said. We are building target areas that are accessible to vehicles and through which large-scale illegal immigration is likely to occur.”